Phrynops (Mesoclemmys) gibbus

Gibba Turtle

Distribution: Columbia , Ecuador, Peru, Venezuala, Guianas and Brazil.

Empire Stock: WC exported from Guyana and Suriname.

Size: Up to 23 cm.

Habitat: Found in shallow soft bottomed bodies of water.

Diet: I feed mine Mazuri Freshwater Turtle pellets, fish, snails, water plants, and some fruits.

Sexing: Males have longer thicker tails and tend to be smaller.

Breeding:

Genotypic Sex Determination (GSD)

Notes: I occasionally see them basking during the day, but find them to be most active at night. I also find them dug in on land.

Care Sheets: ATP

An adult female two years after importation.

More so than many other WC turtles, Gibbas come in with problems due to shell trauma. Soon after arriving scutes begin to peel off and you can see sections of necrotic bone. Dealing with these injuries is pretty easy. Remove the  dead bone and caseous material and treat the wound with a topical antibiotic. House the turtle in a soft bottomed enclosure with clean water and some privacy. In time it should heal like this one did.

Hatching.

Hatchlings.

The carapace colors lighten to brown after a few weeks. This could be due to captive conditions. All of the adults in my collection have black carapaces.

Suggested Reading

McCord, W., M. Joseph-Ouni, W. W. Lamar. 2001. A Taxonomic Reevaluation of Phrynops (Testudines: Chelidae) with the description of two new genera and a new species of Batrachemys. Rev. Biol. Trop. 49(2): 715-764.

Mittermeier, R. A., et al. 1978. Distribution of the South American chelid turtle Phrynops gibbus, with observations on habitat and reproduction. Herpetologica 34: 94-100.